The night tiger by Sherryl Clark & Hannah Sommerville

As the day ends and the setting sun fills the window with red, a boy finishes his meal and plays with mum before he goes to his bedroom. Outside, darkness has fallen and a single star glitters in the sky. The cat jumps onto his bed but the boy cannot close his eyes. Shadows climb over the walls, the boy worries about what might be there in the darkness. He stands by the window and watches the silver-grey outside, hears twigs scratching the glass and bats flying in front of the rolling clouds. The moon casts a pale light over the garden as the boy climbs out of the window, and into the garden.

Once outside he becomes the night tiger.

He stares into the eyes of the black cat, and they pounce. The boy leaps and growls, and vanquishes the shadows. He watches the owl take off from the tree, the tiger flying after him. Coldness grips him, the black cat hisses and the spell is broken. He turns his back on the moon and climbs through his bedroom window. He snuggles down with the cat beside him and dreams of being the night tiger, bouncing, pouncing, while he sleeps. 

This lovely story of imagination, of adventure, of courage will appeal to all children, as they recognise the dreams they also have of being brave, daring, of being heroic and bold, of overcoming fears. In our dreams we can be all we want to be. Beautifully evocative, layered words are accompanied by illustrations that take the breath away. Who hasn’t snuggled in bed worried by the shadows or what might lie in a dark corner of the room. Sommerville creates a dark, menacing background which reflect the boy’s fears, and as he climbs out of the window, he becomes the strong, silent, bold tiger, as the moon offers some light. The dark garden becomes a playground for the tiger and the black cat, as they pounce and bounce through the grass. 

I love the image of the tiger behind the tree, on one side still the boy, then passing behind the tree he emerges as the tiger, and the contrast between the safe room with mum, compared with the darkness of his bedroom. And the endpapers, the first showing the house and garden at sunset, compares neatly with the last endpaper later at night, with everyone asleep. 

Themes: Fear of the dark, Courage, Adventure, Tigers.

Fran Knight